Right Under Your Nose
by lizbethu
Summary: My fourth Arrow fan fiction. Picks up a few months after the end of Season 2 starting with Oliver trying to get Queen Consolidated back. We get to see how the new Team Arrow is doing now that Roy Harper is officially a member, how Diggle is handling pending fatherhood, and what is happening with our favorite archer and his Girl Friday!
1. Chapter 1

**Another Olicity fan fiction piece for you. This takes place following the events from the end of season 2. Please review and enjoy!**

_Thank you all for coming today. _

No, thought Oliver, that sounds like he was officiating a wedding.

_Thank you, Board members, for taking the time out of your busy schedules to be here today._

Better, he thought, adjusting his tie in the mirror.

Oliver had never been nervous about a Queen Consolidated Board Meeting before, but there had never been so much at stake before. He had spent the last four months rebuilding the Queen family reputation as well as pursuing all legal actions to nullify Isabel Rochev's hostile takeover. He had followed all directives and suggestions from his legal counsel and the last step was presenting to the Board why they should hand back the keys to the castle, so to speak, and reinstate him as CEO of the company. It had been exhausting and tedious given the fact that he had also been working full time as the Arrow, helping restore order to the city following the reign of terror Slade had inflicted upon Starling City.

Too bad I can't present my work as the vigilante to the Board, he thought to himself, putting the finishing touches on the Windsor knot of his tie.

He exited the bathroom of his bedroom, grabbing his suit coat off the large four-poster bed before making his way down the majestic staircase of the Queen mansion. Despite the majority of the house being empty, it still felt like home to him, and he was glad the trust set up by his mother allowed him to keep it upon her death despite the fact that he was not currently at the head of their company.

Oliver glanced at his watch, trying to ignore the nerves that were poking at his psyche. Right on cue, the front door opened, Diggle, Felicity and Roy pouring into the large foyer.

Felicity, who was rummaging through her purse upon entering, started to call for him. "OLI…" She stopped, jumping back a step as she finally noticed that he was standing right in front of her. "Sorry, I'm still not used to the whole 'on-time' thing with you these days. Thought we'd have to yank you out of your shower all naked and soaking wet when we got here."

Oliver, amazed that he could still be caught speechless at Felicity's non-filtered comments, gave a soft chuckle, not sure how to respond. Diggle cleared his throat, not able to be as successful as Oliver at stifling his laughter. Roy just rolled his eyes before making an abrupt 180 degree turn to head out the way they had just come in.

"I mean," Felicity stuttered," I wasn't thinking of you naked, just that you would probably be in your shower naked, I mean…" she scrunched her eyes shut, shaking her head in the hopes that if she wished for it hard enough, she could go back in time about 60 seconds and start over.

Oliver quirked his head slightly, waiting to hear how she finished her statement, amusement in his eyes.

"I mean, I just thought you would still be getting ready for the meeting, but I wasn't dwelling on what part of getting ready you would be at….Let's just go," she finally finished, turning around and marching past Roy to lead the group out to the Town Car parked on the front drive. She immediately got into the car, sliding all the way to the other side of the back seat in her usual spot, eyes locked on the unseen horizon out the window, hoping the upholstery would swallow her up into oblivion.

After hearing the other doors close signaling they were all in the vehicle, she felt a large, warm hand engulf her knee. She glanced over at Oliver, a slight smile on his face and a twinkle in his eyes, assuring her he was not offended by her comments.

"Hey, we're all nervous," he offered, giving her knee a slight squeeze. She smiled then, the tension she had been feeling slipping away like it always did when he was there. She could be the most awkward, self-conscious, bumbling idiot in the world at times, but as soon as she had his support, this infinite amount of confidence would seize her, like it was doing now. In that moment she knew, for a fact, that all of the work they had done would finally get Oliver back the company that belonged to him and his family.

As Diggle pulled away from the mansion she pulled her tablet out of her bag, going over the changes she made to the presentation Oliver was giving based on the final decisions they had made the day before. She may not be good with people, but when it came to technology, there was no one better than Felicity Smoak.

"Felicity, I don't know what to say. This is perfect," Oliver finally said, scrolling through the materials she had just shown him. He beamed at her with that same pride he always showed her when she had accomplished something difficult or complex with her technology.

She blushed, pleased at his praise. "It's what I do," she chirped, trying to shuffle the papers in her bag to look busy to avoid eye contact with him and show him just how much his words affected her. He had made it perfectly clear when they had taken down Slade that the words he had spoken to her in the foyer of the Queen mansion were just that, words, a means to an end, namely bringing down Slade, and nothing more. She respected him too much to ask for more, regardless of how she felt about him.

Within minutes they were in front of the QC headquarters, the media waiting for them. Diggle escorted Felicity and Oliver into the building with the help of security while Roy pulled the car around to park in the underground garage.

You could have heard a pin drop in the familiar elevator as they made their way up to the top floor to the executive conference room where the Board waited. Just as they reached the top Felicity reached over and gave Oliver's forearm a squeeze. He looked down at her questioningly, his full on her.

"Good luck," she whispered. He simply smiled at her, giving her a quick wink, then strode forward, chin up and oozing with all the confidence in the world, Diggle giving him a genuine smile after witnessing the exchange.

Felicity stepped out, following close behind, whispering, "Oliver Queen is back, ladies and gentlemen…"


	2. Chapter 2

Roy, Diggle, Layla, Oliver and Felicity all sat around the conference room table on the 3rd floor of QC headquarters, waiting for Oliver's fate to be decided. They had been escorted down to the general conference room level while the Board remained in the executive conference room to share their remarks and take the final vote. Layla had been kind enough to bring them lunch while they waited for the formal decision to be made, although Oliver had left his food untouched. Roy had at one point asked if Oliver was going to finish his sandwich, but the rest of them glared at him until he backed off with his request. The mood in the room was lightened when Felicity asked if Roy was the one pregnant given his appetite, which got a good chuckle out of everyone, and even an appreciative smile from Oliver.

The presentation made by Oliver had gone off without a hitch, but the audience had not given any clues to which way they were leaning in their decision. A few of his mother's old friends had quietly wished him luck before he got started, and the group had all agreed that it was a good sign, although Oliver was not entirely sure. Oliver wished Thea had been there to show a united front to the Board, but he was respecting her wishes to stay distanced from him after learning of his betrayal regarding her parentage. He and Roy never talked about how much they missed Thea, but that shared pain somehow helped bring them together as fighting partners for Team Arrow.

Diggle got up from Layla's side while she chatted with Felicity and made his way over to Oliver.

"How you holding up, Oliver?" he asked, placing a reassuring hand on his friend's shoulder.

Oliver let a soft chuckle escape. "You'd think after all the things we've been through over the last couple of years that waiting on a Board meeting would be easy."

Diggle took the seat next to him. "I guess it all comes down to what's important to you, right?" his friend stated, turning his gaze to Layla. Had he looked up at Oliver at that moment he would have noticed his gaze meaningfully falling on their blonde IT guru.

Realizing what he had been doing, Oliver quickly looked down at his hands. "For so long I saw my family's company as this burden that I didn't want." Diggle looked at him, waiting for him to continue. "And then it was just a front for me to have easy access to the tools and resources I needed to do my work as the Arrow."

Oliver again felt his eyes turn toward Felicity of their own accord. Even when she turned toward him, flashing a reassuring smile his way, he couldn't turn away. "It's like it's right there, taunting me because I want it so badly now, almost in my grasp, but still completely unattainable," he finished quietly, wondering if he was still talking about Queen Consolidated.

Just then there was a soft knock on the door, and a woman whom they recognized as being the formal scribe for the meetings poked her head in. "Mr. Queen, you can come back up now. The Board is ready to share their decision," she stated neutrally.

Oliver stood, letting out a long breath, wiping his now sweaty palms on his pants. "I guess it's time," he said, turning to Diggle.

Diggle held out his hand, giving Oliver's hand a firm shake while he placed his other hand on his shoulder, just shy of pulling him into an embrace. "No matter what the decision, Oliver, I've got your back," he stated simply.

Oliver, feeling a wave of emotion sweep over him, just nodded his head in response, then stepped toward the door, motioning for the rest of the group to precede him. They each gave him a smile before stepping past him.

Again the air was thick with emotion as the elevator made its way back up to the top floor. The group was making their way into the executive conference room when Felicity noticed Walter standing off to the side.

"Walter, I mean, Mr. Steele," she exclaimed, going over and giving him a huge hug in greeting. Oliver came up behind her and shook his hand, hoping Walter's presence was a good sign.

"It's good to see you, Oliver," Walter stated. He asked Felicity how she was doing then turned his attention toward the Board members sitting around the large table in the middle of the room. "I think they're ready to begin."

Oliver took his place where the woman who had brought them up the elevator motioned, then watched as the head of the Board, George Crawford, stood to face him.

"Mr. Queen, before I give you the Board's formal decision, I'd like to share a few words with you to help you understand our decision."

Oliver felt his stomach knotting, feeling as though he was back in the second grade when Mrs. Kohler had called im out on his state report he never finished.

"As you know, this company has had a Queen at the helm since it was started by your grandfather. There were serious concerns when you and your father had disappeared and your mother, may she rest in peace, was thrust into the spotlight." Looking toward Walter, the elderly gentleman continued. "Fortunately for her she not only found an ethical, savvy partner to help her lead, but she flourished in her role as CEO. We were all extremely disappointed, as you can imagine, at the events surrounding her trial, but were initially relieved at the appearance of Isabel Rochev, who seemed to swoop in at the most opportune time to help keep the company in the black."

Oliver tensed slightly at the mention of Isabel, but used all of his will-power to keep his feelings masked.

"I don't think I need to dwell on our surprise and disappointment at Ms. Rochev's deceptive tactics and ulterior motives for coming to the aid of the company. Needless to say, many of us feel that it was under your watch during which time Queen Consolidated saw its darkest days." Crawford looked around the table, seeming to make eye contact with every Board member before continuing. "The stock price descended to levels we had never seen in the entire history of the company. In addition, cutbacks were needed and thousands of employees had to be let go for QC to survive." He looked directly at Oliver, ensuring he had eye contact with the younger man, before adding, "they have been dark days indeed."

Felicity watched as Oliver clenched his jaw, wondering how it didn't pop out of socket at the tremendous pressure he was exerting while all eyes watched for a reaction. In true Oliver-form, he held his head high and maintained his gaze on the head of the Board.

"Yet despite all of this, you came in here today and stated your case, bringing up some very valid points about the events leading up to Rochev's hostile takeover and the steps you have taken to try to bring confidence back to the Queen name. The question on everyone's minds during our review of your case was if it was too little too late."

Oliver's shoulders shifted down just slightly. "I understand," he stated quietly, never taking his eyes off of Crawford.

"Do you really?" Crawford asked, picking up the single piece of paper in front of him on the conference table. "Oliver Queen, it is the decision of the Board by a vote of ten to zero to reinstate you as Chief Executive Officer of Queen Consolidated effective immediately." A collective exhale escaped the occupants of the conference room as Oliver just stared at Crawford, not sure he heard him correctly.

"But I thought..." Oliver stuttered, clearly in shock at the decision given the previous words of the older gentleman.

Crawford held up his hand, signalling for quiet as he stepped toward Oliver. "Oliver, you've done everything Legal Counsel has asked and then some. Based on your actions and words over the last few months you obviously care about this company AND this city. Given your tireless efforts to do what you can to get Starling City back on its feet, its evident you will keep it and QC's best interests in mind as you step back into your rightful position as CEO." He held his hand out to which Oliver graciously took it and shook it. "Welcome back, Mr. Queen."

The room erupted into applause as everyone huddled around Oliver, patting him on the back and offering congratulations. A wave of contentment washed over him as he accepted all of the well-wishes. Glancing at the portraits of the former CEO's along the far wall of the conference room he stared at the image of his mother, feeling her presence around him. He wasn't a very spiritual person given all that he had been through in the last seven years, but at that moment he was confident that his mother was watching over him, proud of him for what he had been able to get done, and for what he was going to do in the future.

_Later that evening..._

Oliver sat in the familiar chair looking out over Starling City from his office on Queen Consolidated. It still seemed sureal that he had his position back and he was again CEO of QC. He glanced at the door to the office, half expecting to see his mother walk in to ask him to review some set of financials or business plan.

"Earth to Oliver," Felicity piped in, noticing the look of meloncholy on his face and determined to pull him out of whatever dark corner he was stuck in. As he turned his eyes to her, she set down the steaming cup of coffee. "I know I vowed to do this only once, but I figured this was a special occasion, so could be an exception," she teased. "I didn't know how long you wanted to stay here before heading to the Lair, or if you wanted to focus on getting caught up with everything you've missed since being gone."

"Felicity, you don't have to stay. You've got to be exhausted after the last two nights we've been working on the presentation."

"I don't mind," she answered, turning back toward the door. "You may not have a lot to do tonight but I've got my work cut out for me. I have no idea who set up my work station, but it's going to take me at least a week to get it back to what it was before," she called over her shoulder.

Oliver smiled, feeling more hopeful about the future than ever before. He had a trusted team behind him, partners that he could truly count on, his company back, and the city was on the mend. Even the tension that had been between him and Felicity over the last few months since they took down Slade seemed to finally be subsiding.

They had never spoken more about the night he had slipped her the Mirakuru cure in the Queen mansion as part of the ruse to get her close enough to Slade to inject him with it other than when they had stopped at the island to confirm Slade was truly locked up where he could never hurt any of them again. He wasn't sure he was ready to face up to the feelings that seeing her at Slade's mercy had conjured before she had successfully injected him. In fact, the entire Slade ordeal had reminded him of the many mistakes he had made, even before the shipwreck and the island. He looked at Felicity then, feeling that familiar wave of warmth her presence brought to him. It had been there since the first time she had helped him back before she knew his secret identity. And ever since then she had continued to work her way more deeply into his life. He often felt that he didn't deserve the kind of unfailing trust she placed in him, but he was too selfish to let her walk away from their team, or him. He remembered what it had been like when she had been in Central City to care for Barry, and it left a bad taste in his mouth.

He pushed aside the mystery of his feelings for Felicity, knowing that someday he would have to face up to them. Until then, there was more work to do, not only for Queen Consolidated, but as the Arrow. The next objective on his list: locate Thea Queen...

**I know I spent an excessive amount of time on the Board meeting and Oliver getting his company back, but it is now done and behind them, and will allow Oliver and Team Arrow to focus on other, more pressing matters. Next chapter should have more Roy, and if all goes as planned, we will hopefully be seeing Thea very soon as well.**


	3. Chapter 3

Felicity sat at her workstation within the new lair, glancing occasionally at Diggle, Roy and Oliver as they trained on the other side of the large room. Their new accomodations were slightly smaller than the basement of Verdant, but there had been too much structural damage to their former base to rebuild following the damage done by Slade's goons.

The thought of Slade sent a chill down Felicity's spine. If she thought too long and hard on the events of that night they brought Slade down it simply left a bad taste in her mouth. She conceeded that the ruse that Oliver put into motion to have her captured by Slade's goons and get her close enough to inject him with the cure from S.T.A.R. Labs was their only move, but she wondered at Oliver's decision to not inform her of their plan ahead of time. She was lucky she hadn't messed up at that moment in the Queen mansion when Oliver had pressed the cure syringe into her hand. She had been so caught off guard by his "I love you" declaration that the shock had actually caused her delayed reaction to the syringe.

She had volunteered herself as bait many times before with sometimes less than stellar results, but in every single one of those scenarios she was fully aware of what she was getting into and was willing to do it. Given Slade's immediate infatuation with her based solely on believing she was the object of Oliver's affection, she wondered if she would have volunteered to be put in that position again. She still woke up periodically in a cold sweat after reliving the feel of Slade's sword at her throat in her nightmares. Although Oliver had claimed that they had both sold the ploy, she had been an unwilling participant to a degree, and had felt as though she were not a partner at all. She had come to terms with the situation and had decided there was no reason to hold a grudge against Oliver for his decision, but it had been a blow to the trust she had in him.

Finally, although his declaration of love was just the icing on the cake to draw Slade in, it still hurt that he had felt it was necessary to throw that into the mix. She knew that her feelings for Oliver, whether they were truly love, or just infatuation for his role as a hero, were not reciprocated, and never would be. She could live with that. However, she knew the moment he had said them that she would never forget it, the look in his eyes, or even how her heart had swelled at the words. She was just thankful that she hadn't made a fool of herself and returned any kind of declaration. She probably could have passed it off as embellishing in the moment, but once said she could never take them back.

Felicity shook her head, pulling herself out of the musings over that night, more than ready to keep moving forward with the rebuilding and search for Thea. Now that Roy was bunking in the spare bedroom of her apartment, she was bound and determined to bring Thea home so he would cease his constant state of depression. He lived and breathed Team Arrow, trying to use the physical challenges to forget about his broken heart. Felicity still couldn't understand why Thea would have changed her mind so abruptly and left after seeking out Roy during that awful night. And Thea's break from Oliver was even more mind-boggling. She understood Thea's disappointment with Oliver, but after losing their mother she expected that it would have brought the two siblings closer.

"Enough dwelling for one night," Felicity stated quietly to herself, turning to get up from her chair only to find herself staring at Oliver's bare chest. What the man had against t-shirts she would never know; but then again, she couldn't complain too much about the view...

"Dwelling on what?" Oliver asked, taking a long swig off of the bottle of water in his hand.

"Nothing," Felicity stated breathlessly, trying not to let his close proximity affect her heart rate. She turned toward Roy.

"Harper, you ready to take off?" she asked, pulling the external hard drive hooked up to her computer and throwing it into her bag.

"Do you guys have to leave right now?" Oliver asked, sounding almost like a petulant child.

"Yes," Felicity responded, making her way around Oliver so she could shut down all of her equipment. "And I suggest you call it a night soon, too. Your first meeting with the Executive VP's is set for 8 AM sharp tomorrow morning," she finished, glancing at her watch.

"Felicity, that's over twelve hours from now," Oliver reasoned, stepping in front of Felicity to block her path back to her desk and all of her belongings. "When was the last time we had a night to relax?" he asked quietly. Oliver gave himself a mental shake when he realized how intimate his question sounded. "I mean, we have all..." gesturing toward Roy and Diggle behind him, "been putting in long hours. You said yourself that you've got all of your programs set to alert you if anything for Thea surfaces, and it's been pretty damn quiet in the city recently now that the SCPD is back at full strength, especially with A.R.G.U.S. special forces supplying back up temporarily. Wouldn't it be fun to just hang out for the evening?" Oliver finished, turning to get some backup.

"No," Roy and Diggle both chimed in at the same time.

"My days with Lyla are limited, so my freetime is not going to be spent with the likes of you three," Diggle finished. At the look of shock on Oliver's face, Roys frown and Felicity's suppressed giggle, he added, "no offense."

"None taken," Felicity said with a big grin.

Roy grabbed his duffle bag and went to stand next to Felicity. "I'm beat, man. I could really use a night of rest. I don't know if you recall, but some of us were still patrolling the city while you were busy putting together your slides and graphs and all that other techy stuff for your meeting. I could really use a night of peace and quiet."

"Then it's settled," Felicity interrupted, glancing at her watch again. "Roy, you've got your key, right?" At the nod of his head she grabbed the last of her stuff. "Have a good night; see you tomorrow," she stated, making her way to the exit.

She felt a very large and warm hand grab her arm and twirl her around, with Oliver placing himself between her and the exit. She was about to throw out a cutting remark about how he was acting like a child when she noticed the forlorn look on his face. It suddenly struck her that this was not the first time Oliver had tried to delay all of them going their separate ways at the end of a long night. It almost seemed as though he were avoiding going back to the mansion...

Felicity suddenly put herself into Oliver's shoes, thinking what it would be like to have to go back to the home you had grown up in, with the rooms empty, not only of furniture, but of all the people who meant so much to you as well. It couldn't be easy to go back to the shell that was once something so much more.

"Felicity, did you hear what I asked?" Oliver said, bringing her out of her own thoughts.

She shook her head, bringing herself back to the here and now. "I'm sorry, what was that?"

"Is there someplace special you're off to tonight?" he asked, dropping his hand from her arm.

Felicity came to a decision at that moment. "Actually, there is. The Glades always has a local art fair called 'Art in the Park'. It is usually just local artists who display their work in the hopes of being discovered by the next art dealer, or just hoping to make a few quick bucks by selling their pieces. It's usually not heavily advertised since it's in the Glades and isn't sponsored by any large organization, but it was happening the weekend I moved here to Starling City after I graduated from college, and I was able to pick up some really unique pieces for next to nothing at the time. I've gone back every year since. Tonight is the last night, and..." she glanced at her watch, "I only have two hours to get down there and view all the art work."

"Oh," Oliver said quietly, stepping off to the side to let her pass. "Have fun," he said, waiting for her to continue toward the door.

"Do you want to come with? I mean, I'm sure the works aren't anything compared to what you're used to seeing, but they have live performers and great food. My treat."

Oliver looked at her suspiciously. "Are you sure?"

"Don't make me beg, Queen. But this train is leaving in 5 minutes, so if you want to come you better go make yourself look..." she gestured at his perfect upper body, sweat glistening from top to bottom, "...presentable." She felt herself blush and was relieved that they hadn't finished updating all of the lighting in the new lair. Oliver Queen was presentable no matter how he looked, but she wasn't going to tell him that. Besides, if she wanted to pay attention to the art work it was probably best he put a shirt on, otherwise her eyes would only be stuck looking at one thing all night.

Oliver's face broke out into a huge grin, with the light actually reaching all the way up to his eyes. He gave her a nod then went quickly to their small locker room to get ready. Felicity felt a wave of warmth envelope her at the thought that she was the one responsible. Slowly she could see Oliver making his way out of the darkness that his mother's death and Thea's leaving had pulled him into. Slowly she could see him leaving the five years he was gone behind him. Slowly, slowly, slowly...


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you to everyone for the thoughtful and constructive reviews. I love getting feedback from readers whether they agree with something I wrote into the story or not. Also, I know some readers were unsure about whether Felicity knew about Oliver's plan to use her as bait or not, which to me was not very clear from the season finale, but apparent Emily Bett Rickards has made some comments to the effect that she was not in on the plan ahead of time. I haven't uncovered the interview, but if I do, I will pass it on for any who are interested. With that being said, I am introducing a DC Comics character here that I will incorporate into the overall storyline more down the road. Hope you enjoy...**

Within 20 minutes Felicity was pulling up to what used to be Starling Park. There had been heavy damage to the buildings and trees the night of Slade's rampage, but most everything that wasn't salvageable had been completely brought down, and you could see that work had already started on some of the damaged facilities. Luckily the garden pavilion had been mostly spared, which was always the focal point of the art fair. Vendors and artists set up their wares in a growing circle out from the pavilion, and if you followed along looking at every artist it would eventually lead you right to the steps of the pavilion, where a makeshift orchestra played soft music throughout the fair.

The crowd was relatively thin as the majority of the regular crowd would come the first two days of the fair, while there was still a large variety of the artwork to choose from, but the fewer people made it easier to see everything. Oliver noticed that many of the artists knew Felicity, calling her by name and pulling out a specific piece of art they may have been holding especially for her. She was ever gracious about the thought, and although she did buy two pieces, was very specific as to why a work she didn't get wasn't the right choice for her now, whether it was not having a large enough wall space for it, or the colors not working in her apartment. However, she took every artist's business card (if offered) and would jot down something relevant about the work they showed her on the back of the card for future reference.

One artist in particular was haggling quite loudly with an elderly man just ahead of them as they were approaching his booth. Oliver instinctively took a step closer to Felicity, placing his hand on her back as they approached the two.

"...this isn't what I asked for, Albrecht. I gave you the swatch of fabric I needed the piece to match, and this doesn't match it, so I'm not buying it."

The artist, Albrecht, seeing Oliver and Felicity approaching, immediately changed his demeanor. "Mr. Larson, although I don't agree with your assessment, and think this piece would be perfect for any accents of that color, I did state you wouldn't have to purchase it if you weren't satisfied with it. I am sure I can find a happy home for it."

Mr. Larson stood there with his hand out, waiting for Albrecht to count the refund into his hand. "Thank you," he stated harshly, turning and practically bowling over both Oliver and Felicity.

"Ms. Smoak," Albrecht gushed, coming out behind his display table to shake hands with Felicity, "I was afraid you had forgotten about all of the little people with Mr. Queen getting his position back with Queen Consolidated." Felicity gave him a frown at his comment, knowing that the official announcement of Oliver's return wasn't due to be released until the following day. At her questioning look he quickly amended, "I have a very good friend at the local business magazine who is working on the story. I was worried that we hadn't heard anything about you in the news for some time, and lo and behold she shared that little tidbit with me about you and your boss being reinstated back at QC. I extend you my most heartfelt congratulations, sir," he finished with an overzealous bow and hand shake to Oliver.

"Thank you," Oliver replied, getting a negative vibe off of the artist. "I'm sorry, I don't think I caught your name. You are?"

"Albrecht," the artist replied, "Albrecht Raines. Please, take one of my cards," he stated, pressing it into Oliver's hand. Oliver automatically handed it directly to Felicity, who rolled her eyes at him, wondering if he even realized he had just pulled a CEO move on the poor guy.

Realizing that Oliver had finished any conversation with him, Albrecht turned back to Felicity. "Felicity," he stated, placing extra emphasis to each syllable, "I have a small piece I thought would be perfect with the color scheme you described for your bathroom last year." He pulled out a rectangular frame with three small pieces side by side in it. It was obvious he had taken great effort in putting it together. Although Felicity had changed her bathroom decor since their conversation which was actually two years ago, she felt sorry for Albrecht.

"It's lovely, Albrecht. Thank you so much for thinking of me. How much would you like for it?" she asked.

"I'm sure you can agree that there was a great amount of time and effort that went into, not only the actual artwork, but the framing as well," he stated.

Felicity, starting to lose patience, ground her teeth. "Albrecht, it's getting late and we have an early morning meeting tomorrow. Both Mr. Queen and I need to get home...I mean, our respective homes, separately, located in completely different parts of the city...".

As Felicity was bumbling through her explanation as Albrecht looked on with a perplexed expression, Oliver reached into his wallet and pulled out two one-hundred dollar bills. "I think this should cover it. Thank you Mr. Raines, and have a good evening," he finished, grabbing Felicity's arm and turning her back toward where her car was parked.

They could hear Albrecht's jubilation at the large amount he had just been handed, calling after them both to have a "splendid evening." Oliver rolled his eyes, marvelling once again at Felicity's capacity to extend kindness and generosity beyond where anyone else would do so.

"Oliver, I will pay you back, I promise," Felicity stated, looking down at the work, turning the frame from one side to another, trying to figure out what she was looking at.

"Consider it a 'thank you' gift for letting me tag along tonight," he stated. Holding up the paper bag with the other pieces Felicity purchased he added, "just think of it as spreading the wealth to our local artists. I get the feeling these pieces were heavily under priced due to the recipienct of them," he added, giving her a wink as he thought back to how thoughtful and gracious the other artists had been at Felicity's attention to them.

They had just come up to the car as Felicity popped the trunk and leaned in to place the piece from Albrecht, just as Oliver was placing the bags of the other items. Their heads collided gently, causing them both to take a step back, the framed piece falling from Felicity's hand and landing at their feet. The glass in the frame cracked all the way across, although none fell out due to how the whole thing had landed. They both laughed, rubbing their respective heads.

"I'm so sorry," Oliver got out, laughing slightly.

Felicity was still rubbing her head at the point of contact. "Is there any part of your body that isn't rock hard?" she got out before she could think. Realizing the inuendo of her comment she closed her eyes, hoping Oliver hadn't heard her.

"Actually, my mother did say she wondered at how hard my skull was growing up given how many times I would bang my head and not be affected by it as a small child. I think for a while she even considered making me wear a little helmet," he added, trying to gloss over her comment, despite the feelings it surprisingly stirred in him.

Felicity laughed, relieved at his response. She then picked up the frame. "I guess I'll have to get it repaired," she stated, wondering how she would transport it without getting glass all over her trunk.

"Do you really like it that much?" Oliver asked, wondering suddenly about her taste.

"No," she blurted, "I think it's hideous."

They both laughed then. Oliver took the frame from her hand and walked over to a large trash can close by to deposit the piece. "Problem solved," he said, closing her trunk and heading around to the driver side door to open it for her.

Felicity had an uneasy look as she eyed the broken art work in the trash can, the top part sticking out of the overflowing can. "What if he sees it there?" she asked, feeling bad about what happened, but somewhat relieved that she wouldn't have to find a place to store the piece.

"Felicity, the chances of him seeing it there before the trash is removed is so minimal, I wouldn't think twice about it," Oliver finished.

They drove off, chatting about the fair and then reviewing what would be covered in the meeting the next morning. Felicity was glad she could be a distraction for Oliver so he wouldn't have to go back to an empty house, and Oliver found himself simply enjoying Felicity's company, yet again. She always seemed to bring a lightness to his heart that allowed him to slowly let go of the weight that resided there from his past.

Hours later, as the artists were making their way back to the parking lot to load up their items, Albrecht Raines noticed the glint from the street lamp above the trash can that was about ten feet from his old, beat up Volkswagen van. After everything was loaded he made his way over to the trash can, pulling the one side of the frame out to get a better look at what it contained. Rage filled his entire body, and he threw the frame back down, then kicked out at the can, spreading its contents across the grass next to the parking lot. A few of the other artists still around yelled out to him, telling him to take it easy or settle down. He heard none of it. All he could think of were all of the patrons who had criticized and ridiculed his works, and in particular he thought back to the last couple that had stopped to see him, who had taken that frame and paid $200 to him for it. He had been on cloud nine until seeing it in the trash.

He was sick of the rejection, sick of barely getting by. Then, a thought came to him. He reached to the floor of the passenger side of his van and pulled up a stack of the Starling City Business Journal editions that he had stashed there. His "friend" was actually one of his exes who made it perfectly clear she didn't appreciate how nosy he was about her work. In fact, after he had drilled her about any new tidbits and gotten the Oliver Queen story, she had threatened that if he called her again she would get a restraining order taken out against him.

He flipped through the pile, searching for one edition in particular that had been published almost a year ago. It was an interesting article on counterfeit money and how its production was on the rise with the latest technology advancements. It also gave a very detailed list of attributes that the Treasury used in real money to differentiate it from counterfeit money. Looking over the article again, Albrecht decided enough was enough, and perhaps he needed to get into a new line of work seeing as the life of an artist was not all he had hoped it would be. He slammed his van into gear and exited the parking lot quickly, almost side-swiping one of the other artists on the way out. He waved his fist at the other vehicle, speeding home. He had his work cut out for him. Yes indeed, Albrecht Raines was ready to turn over a new leaf, and it starts tonight...


End file.
